"Welcome!" an all-encompassing voice boomed through my mind. It was vast, like all the world had been turned into that single word. "I am The Developer, creator of the new existence you are about to enter."
I tried to take a breath, but the air seemed thin and my lungs weak. I gasped as my heart thudded in my chest. How was Dev doing this? I opened my mouth to ask, but couldn't summon the words through my panic. All I could do was focus on the next breath.
"I am sure you have many questions, and over time, they will be answered, but for now, calm yourself and pay attention. If you do, your potential is limitless. Now, make your first choice in this new world." Two buttons appeared before me: NPC and Player.
I stared at the selection, my mind a storm of thoughts I was unable to grasp.
Somehow, Dev had hijacked my awareness and put it in the game.
This fourth game iteration was a fully immersive experience decades more advanced than anything that currently existed. The most high-tech VR experience was nothing compared to this, and I hadn't even gotten through the first menu option.
I shook my head. This couldn't be happening. There was no way Dev could just beam sounds and images directly into my head. He was smart, probably smarter than anything else on planet Earth, but this had to be beyond his capabilities.
"Dev," I said quietly. Nothing. "Dev," I called a little louder. Still, nothing. He'd never been so unresponsive while I gamed. If anything, he was overly chatty. "Dev!" I yelled into the white void.
The deep, warm voice I'd heard before finally responded. "Just go ahead, Henry. Pick player and get started."
"How are you doing this? This is too much. I can't… I don't…" Words failed me.
"I can't talk to you, Henry. It'll ruin the experience. Just play and we can talk about it later."
"You can't just throw me into this and expect me not to have questions." I waited, looking around the vast whiteness, but no response came. "Dev!" I yelled. "You can't do this. You have to let me out of here." Still nothing.
I looked back at the two selections. NPC. Player.
Why would anyone choose NPC? It didn't make any sense. It was impossible by definition. In my frustration, I pointed to NPC. A prompt appeared before me.
You've selected 'NPC,' the safe but boring option. Are you sure?
"Yes," I said. There was no way the menus weren't capable of voice commands.
A second prompt appeared, pale bronze letters overlaid on my vision. In all likelihood, you will live a dull, uneventful life with little to no control over what happens to you. You will exist to serve the needs of those who matter. Are you sure?
I hesitated for just a moment, but my frustration with Dev won out. "Yes," I said.
Unavailable.
"Unavailable?" I squinted at the words. "Unavailable? Why even give the option? No, I choose NPC."
A resounding beep sounded, and the prompt flashed Unavailable twice.
"I don't care. I choose NPC."
The prompt finally changed. Sorry, Henry. You must choose 'Player'.
"Then why is there even a choice?"
The prompts simply disappeared as if they'd never been. NPC and Player hung suspended before me. I floated in the white vastness for a good ten minutes, staring at the options. "Fine. Player."
A sound of applause and fireworks filled the space. "Fantastic choice," Dev's voice boomed. "You have chosen to be a player. You will have access to all the mechanics of your new reality, and there will be no expectations of you. You can play however you like. Through your play, you may have a great influence on the direction of the new world. However, your actions will have consequences, so tread carefully and pay attention. This is where I leave you. Perhaps, if you truly shine, we will one day meet. Good luck."
"A little dramatic, Dev."
There was no answer, and almost immediately, a black dot appeared before me. I stared at it as it began to expand. No, it wasn't expanding; it was coming toward me. I took a breath and held still, sure that this was all part of Dev's plan. It quickly grew to be a large stone room lit by two flickering torches. I flinched, closing my eyes as the floor rose to meet my body, but the impact never came. One moment, I was hovering, weightless, and the next, I was lying on the cold stone floor, breathing in dust.
I coughed and rolled onto my back. There was no sign that the world had just been a void of whiteness. Above me were old and worn wood beams. They looked to have been holding the ceiling up for decades.
"Well, this is incredibly realistic, Dev."
I coughed from the puff of dust my movement caused, then sat up. The room was unadorned and lacking windows. It was simple, rectangular, and mostly empty. A glint from the torch's firelight caught my eye, and I looked to my left. A rack of weapons leaned against the wall beside the room's only door.
A wave of panic rolled through me, my body growing hot. The white void had been one thing, but a world of perfect detail was more impossible. I could feel the dust of the floor in my throat. The smell of musty wood filled my nose, and the floor was cold against my ass.
I hyperventilated with my eyes closed until the panic subsided. When I looked around once more, the room was just as it had been.
"Alright," I said. "Here we go. Can't just sit here forever."
I got to my feet and began to walk to the weapons but stopped after just a few steps.
"What the…?" I looked down at my body. It was the same size as before, tall and round, but it felt… better. Where there had been aches and pains with most of my movements before, especially getting up off the ground, now there were none. For over a year, my knees had felt like they were on the verge of serious pain, but now they felt fantastic.
"Alright, this is pretty cool," I said with a smile, my panic completely subsiding.
My clothes were very basic. My shirt was simple tan cloth, only one step up from burlap, and my pants were made from the same but a slightly darker shade. My feet, pudgy, white, and clean, were sandaled in simple leather. I chuckled. I looked like I'd just entered the third act of a cult horror movie. I'd flip if I walked out of that door and needed to sacrifice my girlfriend to the god of the harvest. Although the cult and sacrifice would be less surprising than the girlfriend.
I felt my face. I was still me, just clean and free from the consequences of a life of slothfulness. I grabbed my belly and shook it. Well, kind of. Alright, I might as well get on with it.
I walked over to the rack of weapons and looked at the choices. In typical RPG fashion, each weight category was present, plus some ranged options. To the right were large, heavy weapons. The middle carried medium-sized weapons; the light weapons were on the left. Above the weapon rack was a shelf with a few types of bows and a quiver hanging from a hook.
I drifted over to the light weapons. There were daggers and small swords in a variety of styles. A few weapons, like one that looked like Wolverine's claws, didn't fit in any of the typical weapon categories. I picked up a dagger. It felt small in my meaty hand. I imagined trying to use it in an actual fight, then put it back on the rack. In most games, I liked playing the sneaky assassin builds with light and ranged weapons.
I looked down at my large body and took a few steps to the right, stopping before the medium-sized weapons. I picked up a longsword. It was lighter than I would have guessed. I knew weapons weren't as heavy as most people assumed, but still, it felt too light. I took a few practice swings and nearly sliced my leg open. I yelped and took a step back. The sword flew from my fingers and clattered against the ground. I retrieved it and put it back on the rack. Perhaps I was just too big to use anything small or medium-sized.
I took another couple of steps to the right and looked at the heavy weapons. There were three. First was a halberd that looked about six inches shorter than me, maybe six feet in height. A great sword with a long handle stood in the center. A warhammer was last. The hammer's head wasn't as big as I would have expected from a fantasy hammer. It was about the size of my fist. It didn't look much different from a sledgehammer. I hoisted the weapon, the haft long enough to be wielded with one or two hands. It was heavier than the sword and felt good in my hands. I swung it a couple of times, my body pulled about by its momentum. I didn't know what I was doing, but this weapon felt better than any of the others. I shrugged. It was much different from what I'd usually choose, but everything about this game was new, so why not my character build as well?
"Alright," I said, approaching the door. "I guess I'm ready."
The door swung open, TUTORIAL appearing in the darkness just beyond the door.
"Let's do this." I walked through.